Yoruichi's Story
by chardy1366
Summary: AU, Ichigo dies after finishing off Aizen. He tells Yoruichi how he feels, just before he dies. This is the story of her overcoming her grief and never getting to express her feelings back. Adult situation: alcoholism


Yoruichi's Story

All characters and rights belong to Tite Kubo. I'm just adding thoughts.

Ichigo charged at Aizen in his final form. The resulting explosion covered the area with dust and debris. Isshin, Yoruichi, and Urahara rushed to the epicenter of a giant crater left from Ichigo and Aizen's final blow. Looking around, Isshin was the first to spot Ichigo, lying still in his regular form. Zangetsu was sticking in the ground next to him. Aizen was nowhere to be found, although, Urahara could see the cracked shell of the dead and powerless hokyouku laying nearby. Then they all noticed the large pool of blood beneath Ichigo's bruised and badly broken body. Isshin quickly found a weak pulse and was amazed when Ichigo opened his eyes. Ichigo knew he was done for, having stared down death so many times. He weakly whispered "Dad, I'm sorry. Tell Karin and Yuzu I'm sorry." On his other side, Ichigo noticed Yoruichi kneeled down beside him. He turned his head and smiled. Noticing the tears forming in her eyes, he said " I wish I had more time, I wish I had told you how much I lo..."(coughing up blood) "I love you...". Before he could finish the statement, he was gone.

The three former captains all broke down in tears. Yoruichi crying the hardest at the deathbed confession. The one who had piqued her interests, whom she had teased to no end, harbored feelings for her. Now, she would never be able to tell him how she felt.

No more than a minute had passed before the captains and lieutenants arrived to behold the ghastly scene. Byakuya, Mayori, and Zaraki also arrived from Hueco Mundo shortly after. No one was able to speak, so distraught the group was. Captain Hitsuguya was the first to notice Zangetsu still sticking in the ground in his cleaver-like shikai form. "Head Captain, shouldn't Ichigo's zanpakuto have disappeared when he, ahh...?" said Toshiro, unable to finish the statement. It was then that a new figure appeared to the group. Head Captain Yamamoto looked at the Older looking gentleman in the shades and asked " Who might you be?". "My name is Zangetsu. I was Ichigo's zanpakuto." "Was?" questioned Kisuke, joining the conversation. "Yes, was. Before Ichigo passed on, we talked, and Ichigo made a special request of me. He asked that I lend my strength and continue to protect that which he valued more than anything else." calmly stated Zangetsu. "And just who was Ichigo referring to?" asked Yamamoto inquisitively. Zangetsu simply said "Yoruichi". To say that Yoruichi was shocked, would be an understatement. It would be more accurate to say all the air got knocked out of her. She was stupified, unable to think. Before anyone else could ask another question, Zangetsu reformed into a ball of reiatsu and slammed into Yoruichi's frozen form.

Yamamoto was about to question Yoruichi about the incident, when suddenly a large black crow swooped down and lit on his shoulder. He paused and listened intently. Just as quickly, the crow lifted off and vanished. Yamamoto spoke "The Soul King has requested my presence. I must go, but I would like you all to meet me in the Captain's meeting room when I return. We have much to discuss and many decisions to make. Oh, and Kisuke, would you mind getting Shinji and his group to come also. Mayori, please make a senkaimon and 5 passes for Isshin's daughters and Ichigo's friends to join us. I shall return shortly." And so, everyone dispersed, the captain's and their direct subordinates to the meeting room, Isshin and Mayori to round up his daughters and Ichigo's friends, and Kisuke to gathered the vizards. Only Yoruichi, Byakuya, Renji, and Rukia remained, still stunned by the loss, unable to let go. Fifteen minutes went by before anyone was able to speak, Byakuya being the first. "We should gather...Ichigo... and head back to meet the others." Renji and Rukia both nodded, but Yoruichi was still frozen in place, knelt beside ...him. Byakuya slowly approached and squatted in front of her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and shook her to get her attention. It was then that Yoruichi finally broke down. Her shoulders started quivering and she started sobbing uncontrollably.

About 3 hours passed when Yamamoto reappeared through a gate, directly into the Captain's meeting room. He saw that all he had requested were in attendance, many still severely grief-stricken. The body of their hero was wrapped and laid just outside the room in the large Squad One courtyard. Yamamoto proceeded to start the meeting. "Before we get down to the business of honoring our fallen hero, we should deal with the current situation. Central 46 is no more. All of their responsibilities now fall to us, the 13 court guard squads. Unfortunately, we are missing 3 captains. Hopefully today we can change that. I see before me today, many former captains. Isshin Kurosaki, I think it is time you rejoined us, and I would like you take over squad 3. What say you?" "What of my two daughters? asked Isshin. "Considering that they are both daughters of a soul reaper, they will eventually end up here regardless. And it seems that both may be close to gaining their powers anyway" answered the head captain. "Well then, I would be honored" said Isshin. "Good! Now, the next squad in need of a captain would be Fifth. I would like to ask Yoruichi to lead it." "No." plainly stated Yoruichi. "I can speculate on your reasons, but would you consider it?" "It should be him, n-not me. I should be standing b-by his s-side with him as the c-captain" Yoruichi sobbed. "Very well, perhaps after some time, you will reconsider" answered Yamamoto back. After that, Yamamoto named Kisuke to Squad Nine, and Shinji became the captain of the newly created Squad Fourteen, the vizard squad.

After the meeting, the whole of Fourteen Court Guard Squads came together to honor Ichigo's sacrifice. It was a simple ceremony, filled with reminiscing and both tears of joy and sadness as the many people touched by Ichigo recanted their tales for others. It was especially hard on a particular close-knit group of shinigami and humans. Life returned to normal and moved on for everyone except Yoruichi.

Yoruichi did, however, find a reprieve from her grief. She spent her days and nights at the bottom of a bottle, wallowing in self-pity and despair. Each day was the same for her: wake up with a terrible hangover, and wash it away, then drink till she couldn't feel the pain anymore. As the days turned to weeks, her friends took notice and begged her to stop. And one-by-one, each were ignored or alienated. No one could get thru to her. It had been approximately 2 months since the Winter War finale, and Yoruichi was having a particularly tough day. She decided that today would be the day when she saw just how much she could put away. She had to stop the memories from replaying over and over again. Deep down, she knew that the possibility existed that today could be the last day she ever drank, or continued breathing for that matter, but she just didn't care anymore. She was beyond gone, lost and only seeing this one avenue of escape from the pain. And so she drank, and drank. Hours passed by, and she finally reached the precipice of her drinking and her pain. Yoruichi turned the bottle up and drained it, stumbling around her small hut she had taken to staying in yelling and screaming for it to all just end. It was a full minute before she noticed him standing there, but she was too far gone to recognize him. Zangetsu just shook his head and pointedly told her, "You dishonor yourself, and you dishonor Ichigo. I didn't agree to become your zanpakuto to watch you destroy yourself with drink. I did it because Ichigo loved you, and since I was a part of him, I shared the same feelings. With that said, I will not stand idly by and just let you throw your life away." After his confession, Zangetsu drew back and punched her in the stomach, causing Yoruichi to violently spew the contents of her stomach. She passed out on the floor shortly after.

Bright lights stung Yoruichi's eyes when she opened them 3 days later. She did not immediately recognize her surroundings, but quickly figured out she was laying in the hospital ward of the Fourth squad. She was shocked to see Ichigo's little sister, Yuzu, asleep in the chair next to her bed. A voice carried over from the doorway, "She hasn't left your side since you were brought in" said Captain Unohana, very softly. Yoruichi's face was still twisted in confusion, so Unohana decided to elaborate. "Captain Isshin and his daughters happened by to check on you per Byakuya's request, and found you passed out. They were unable to rouse you, and so brought you here. You are very lucky your friends care so much about you, left in your former state, it is entirely possible that you would've never awoken again."

Not to long after Unohana left, Yuzu woke up. She noticed Yoruichi looking at her and smiled her kind smile. "Lady Shihoin, I am so happy to see you finally awake. I was so worried about you" said Yuzu. Yoruichi was taken aback, and vocalized her confusion. "Why have you stayed with me all this time?" Yuzu looked her in the eye and said "Because you're family... You may not have been born a Kurosaki, and you may not have some piece of paper that declares you a part of this family, but Ichigo loved you and gave a piece of his soul to you. In Karin's eyes and mine, that makes you our big sister, and we will always be there for you when you need us. So please", continued Yuzu as she began to get choked up, "please don't leave us." As she ended her statement, Yuzu stood and walked to Yoruichi's bed and hugged her as tears fell freely from both of their eyes. Yoruichi opened her eyes after a few minutes to see Karin and Isshin both standing in the doorway with tears in their eyes, so she pushed Yuzu back from her until she was looking her in the eyes and vowed, "I promise I won't give up again. If you three can stand by me, then I can stand with you". At that, both Karin and Yuzu both hugged her, as Isshin looked on proudly.

The next day, Yoruichi was discharged from the medical ward, but instead of returning to her empty home, she went to live with the Kurosaki family. The days began to pass one-by-one, and with each day it became a little easier. She was constantly reminded of what she lost, but she was done hiding from his memory. And with that resolve, she grabbed the more-often-than-not quiet zanpakuto, waved goodbye to Karin and Yuzu, and headed to the underground training area. When she arrived, she noticed Byakuya leaned against the wall waiting patiently. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "I sensed your resolve had returned, and I am here to ensure it does not go to waste. I am also uniquely qualified to help you train with that sword and maximize its power, since Senbonzakura and Zangetsu have...interacted... before." he replied, with just a hint of a smirk. And with that statement, he disappeared and reappeared behind her and grabbed the ribbon tying her hair up, and took off. She had to smile, but that didn't mean he had any chance of getting away. An evil smile graced her lips and she bolted after him.

**9 years and a few months later**

Yoruichi was awakened by the Head Captain's voice coming from the hell butterfly fluttering above her. "Hollows have been detected in the southern district. I want squad 3 captain, and squad 5's lieutenant and 6th seat to investigate. Destroy all hollows and report back." 'What a pain' thought Yoruichi. Still she rose up and went to fetch her new 6th seat, Karin Kurosaki. Together they headed towards the southern district. Upon arriving, Yoruichi was suddenly grasped from behind in a tight hug. She heard, "Oh my oldest daughter! How good it is to see you once again!", and realized it was Isshin. Karin quickly delivered a kick to her father's head and yelled for him to cut it out. Isshin regained his composure when they suddenly felt the hollow's spiritual pressure. The captain and lieutenant both took a step back to watch the youngest Kurosaki in action. No sooner had the hollow emerged from the trees, its head toppled off its shoulders to the ground. Yoruichi congratulated her on her flash step and Isshin merely beamed with pride. Not sensing anymore pressure, the 3 turned to leave, but froze in their tracks when they suddenly sensed a Garganta open directly above them. They were nearly floored by the massive amounts of reiatsu radiating from the 4 Arrancar who stepped out. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" boomed Isshin's voice. " You may just refer to us as your death, and as for the second part of your question, we're here for a little payback" said the lead Arrancar with a deathly glare. The 4 arrancars drew their swords and proceeded forward. Isshin and Yoruichi both yelled bankai in tandem. The 3 soul reapers then wasted no time and all called out getsuga tensho. (Yoruichi has zangetsu, remember?) A black, white, and purple energy wave streaked across and literally dissolved one espada before he could take another step. Each soul reaper then took off toward a different Arrancar. Suddenly all 6 fighters turned sensing a new spiritual pressure arriving. They all looked down and glimpsed a lone hooded figure calmly reaching into his cloak. As he was retracting his hands, he vanished. Confused, Isshin turned back to his opponent to see the arrancar wide-eyed and split in two, cleanly down the center. What's more, the other 2 arrancar suffered similar fates. To say Yoruichi was shocked was an understatement. She was still the reigning Queen of flash step, and with the addition of Zangetsu and bankai, she was untouchable. but this stranger had moved so fast that she could scarcely move her eyes fast enough to track him, much less see his attacks. Just as quickly as the mystery man had appeared, he was gone. Only then did Yoruichi notice Zangetsu glowing a bright blue in her hand. What did it all mean? she wondered. The 3 soul reapers surveyed the area, and satisfied that no other reiatsu could be detected, they also left to report to the head captain.

They were surprised to find the meeting room full of people anxiously awaiting their return. Yamamoto asked for their reports and listened intently as first Isshin spoke, then Yoruichi. She carefully left out the part about Zangetsu's reaction. Yamamoto said "Perhaps I can shed some light on this enigma. Apparently, after this mysterious stranger was done aiding you 3, he made his way here. I have been chatting with him up until a few minutes ago. But after meeting him and talking to him, I have decided to put his name forth for a possible captain of squad 5". Everyone was shocked, with Yoruichi feeling a certain pain at the suggestion. "Head Captain! How can you suggest such a thing, especially on the tenth anniversary of Ichigo Kurosaki's heroic sacrifice? I only accepted the Lieutenant's post with the understanding that Ichigo would be listed as the Captain. I thought we had all agreed to honor him in this way!" she ended angrily. Yamamoto cracked his eyes slightly and responded, "Yes, we agreed to that, but... I feel that we must move forward. Perhaps it is time to fill the vacant position." "Then I challenge him for the Captain's position. I won't let anyone ever fill that post." growled out a very pissed Yoruichi. Yamamoto merely grunted and motioned toward the door. The very same hooded man they had encountered earlier entered, as the assembled crowd became a little more guarded. Yamamoto turned and asked, "Would you be willing to fight for the role of Captain?" to which the mystery man replied "I think I can handle it". '**That voice! It can't be! It isn't possible!**' screamed Yoruichi's head over and over. She stepped forward, and the other captains noticed the pained expression she wore, one of confusion and utter sorrow. She slowly walked toward the mystery guest and reached up with shaky arms to remove the hood, Zangetsu pulsing quickly on her back. When the hood fell, she first noticed the shock of orange hair, then the kind smile, as tears fell freely from her eyes. She could not speak, she was frozen in between overwhelming happiness and the ten years of mental anguish she had suffered. "Its good to see you again Yoruichi, I've missed... mmph.." but Ichigo never got to finish the statement as Yoruichi pressed her lips to his, silencing his coming apology. A full minute passed before the two were brought back to the reality of their current location by Yamamoto coughing. "Do you still wish to fight?" he softly asked. Yoruichi, still weak on her feet, moved to Ichigo's side, not daring to let go of him. She shook her head no. Yamamoto continued by asking the assembled captains to vote on Ichigo becoming a captain, but Mayori Kurotsuchi stopped them by reminding everyone that Ichigo gave up his zanpakuto to Yoruichi. Ichigo promptly agreed to test himself the following morning. Everyone nodded and agreed to meet on sokyoku hill for the test the following morning. Until then, it was also agreed that squad 3 would host a welcome home party in honor of Ichigo's return. He was reunited with his family and friends, and enjoyed a night of celebration. In case you're wondering where Yoruichi was, she never left his side.

It was early in the morning, and the party had wound down. Yoruichi and Ichigo were sitting snuggled up on the edge of the cliff at Sokyoku Hill. She turned to him and asked where he had been and what he had been doing. He explained how when he had died, he was transported to the Soul King's plane. "The Soul King thanked me and congratulated me. He also offered to train me and return my shinigami powers. I agreed and he sent for Yamamoto and explained the whole thing to him. So I've been training for almost 10 years now. I'm miles above where I was when I defeated Aizen. And my inner hollow... he's now my zanpakuto. But enough about me, I want to hear what you've been up to these years. Zangetsu told me some of it when I first got back, and I'm sorry. I wish I hadn't left you alone." With that, Ichigo's face dropped as his eyes became blurry. Yoruichi reached over and cupped his chin and lifted his face, and whispered "Yes, I almost let grief take me, but that is my fault, not yours. Besides, Zangetsu saved me at my lowest point, so I guess you were still protecting , and before I forget or get interrupted again, I love you too. Sorry it took me 10 years to say it." She was smiling with tears streaming down her cheeks as she pressed her lips to his.

Author's notes: That's it! I wanted it to be longer, but I can't add to it without fear of detracting from it. I have had it sitting on my hard drive for 3 months now reading over it countless times. This is the story I have wanted to tell, but I can't find better words to describe it. I would sorta like to fill in some of the gaps, such as Yoruichi's training with Zangetsu, but I want to leave some parts to your imagination. I picture the old man giving her a hard time, but her still having very little trouble accomplishing her goals. So fill in the blanks as you see fit. I hope you enjoyed Yoruichi's tale!


End file.
